Doctor Druid may be a student of the mystic arts, but that doesn’t mean that he walks a righteous path. This week on Marvel 101, follow the descent of Doctor Druid through life, death, and the afterlife.

The Hype vs The Hawk

Going Ringside in Anticipation of The SQUADRON SUPREME Dust-Up

by Tim Stevens

Good evening fight fans, have we got a doozy for you! January 18, in SQUADRON SUPREME #15, Marvel will give the readers what they have been hungering for: Nighthawk versus Hyperion! Before you place your bet in this titanic tussle, we give you the breakdown, the Tale of the Tape!

POWERThe edge here clearly goes to Hyperion. With his alien physique giving him strength and speed, his punching power can only be describe as off the charts. Nighthawk’s left hook might not be something to sneeze at, but he just cannot compete with Hyperion’s hands of stone.

FIGHTING SKILLDespite Hyperion’s clear power advantage—or perhaps because of it—he actually does not have what is widely regarded as a skilled approach to head to head brawling. Relying on power over technique, he works mostly with brute force. Nighthawk, on the other hand, has proven time and again to be a master of open hand and weaponized combat. This fight seems to be a classic “strength versus skill” matchup.

GADGETSNighthawk has them, Hyperion does not. It does not get more simple than that.

RUTHLESSNESSAnyone who has ever seen Nighthawk fight has seen a man unafraid to get his hands dirty and to deal justice via the most violent means possible. When it comes to mercy, Nighthawk seems fairly unaware of the concept. Hyperion, on the other hand, seems a bit more…conflicted on this question. When he goes there, though, he goes there, be it cutting off your head with his eyebeams or scattering your body across the airless expanse of space.

DEDICATIONBoth fighters have been recently gripped by crises of conscience. We’ve seen Hyperion leave his team twice to try and find himself on the roads and small towns of the United States. Nighthawk, on the other hand, has kept his ambivalence tight to the chest, a more internal struggle. Given this, the edge seems to go to Nighthawk. He has conflicts but he keeps them on the back burner so he can really concentrate on the face smashing.

SUPER POWERSHyperion can fly. He can fire beams from his eyes. He appears bullet proof and blades do not pierce his skin. Nighthawk…works out.

This seems like a clear cut advantage to Hyperion, but consider this—his powers come with a rumored big weakness, one that does not just make him like a man, but rather barely able to stand, never mind fight. And if ever there existed a fighter willing to go that far, well, that would certainly be Nighthawk.